Citizen Disputes

May 2, 1985

STATE GUIDELINES for forming Citizen Dispute Settlement centers and some legal protection for their officers and employees are in a bill passed by the Senate and sent to the House. Florida already has 15 centers to mediate minor criminal and civil matters outside the formal court system, but there is little uniformity among them. Some centers were formed by courts and others by state attorneys, local Bars or private non-profit groups. The bill (SB 44) requires new ones to be approved by local chief circuit judges and county commissioners.